1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns floor covering panels, in particular hard laminate panels.
2. Related Art
It is known that such laminate panels can be made of different layers. Usually, the panels are formed of boards based on wood products, such as chipboard or fibreboard, in particular MDF or HDF (medium density fiberboard and high density fiberboard), upon which one or several layers, including a panel decorative layer, are provided at least on the top side. The panel decorative layer may be a printed paper layer, but in certain embodiments it may just as well be a layer of wood, in particular veneer. Such panels can also be made of other materials, for example merely synthetic material, or of a base plate having a wood base, such as chipboard, MDF or HDF and the like, upon which is provided, instead of a printed paper layer or veneer, another material such as cork, thin strips of wood and the like.
It is also known to couple these panels on their edges as they are laid, either by means of a conventional tongue and groove joint, whereby they are possibly glued together, either by means of a glueless coupling which provides for a mutual interlocking of the panels both in the horizontal and vertical direction, for example as described in international patent Publication No. WO 97/47934.
The present invention relates to hard laminate panels for forming a floor covering and which provides for new embodiments according to different aspects offering respective-advantages.
According to a first aspect, the invention provides for a floor panel comprising at least on two opposite edges having coupling means or elements made in one piece with the panels, so that several ones of such panels can be mutually coupled at such edges, whereby these coupling elements provide for an interlocking in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the floor covering, as well as in a direction perpendicular to the edges concerned and parallel to the plane of the floor covering, and whereby these coupling elements are made such that the panels can be rotated into and/or out of one another at least along the above-mentioned edges, and wherein the panels are provided, at least on the above-mentioned edges, near the top side, with a part from which has been removed an amount of material (e.g., a bevel).
With material removed from the top edge, several advantages are obtained. A first advantage consists in that the panels, as they are rotated, both when rotating into one another and when rotating out of one another, can be moved more easily in relation to one another, as there are no angular edges anymore which hinder the mutual rotation of the panels. A second advantage consists in that the panels can be made heavier, in particular thicker than as usual, as the thickness of the panels, thanks to the bevel, has little or no influence anymore on the good working order of the above-mentioned coupling means, during the rotating in and/or the rotating out.
Preferably, the above-mentioned parts consist of bevels, in particular with a gradient of 45xc2x0. Practically, the bevels preferably extend, in a horizontal direction, over a distance of at least 1 millimeter. Preferably, however, this distance is in the order of magnitude of 2 millimeter.
According to a different variant of the first aspect of the invention, the coupling elements are made such that the panels, instead of being disconnectable at least by a rotation, can be disconnected from one another at least in one other manner. Even then, the above-mentioned bevel still offers certain advantages, as will become clear from the following description.
According to the most preferred embodiment, the panels are rectangular and are provided with the above-mentioned parts, that is, the above-mentioned bevels, respectively, on all four-sides.
According to a second aspect which can either or not be combined with the first aspect, the invention provides for a floor covering panel comprising a hard panel with a core upon which is provided a panel decorative layer, whereby these panels are rectangular and elongated and are provided with coupling means at least on the two opposite longitudinal edges, so that several ones of such panel can be mutually coupled to one another, whereby these coupling elements provide for an interlocking in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the floor covering, as well as in a direction perpendicular to the edges concerned and parallel to the plane of the floor covering, and whereby these coupling elements are made such that each panel can be coupled to and/or uncoupled from another similar panel by means of a rotation along their opposed longitudinal edges, and the width of the panels is smaller than 17 cm, and preferably even smaller than 16 cm.
Further, the panel, apart from the above-mentioned maximum width, preferably has a length which amounts to at least eight times the width.
It is known that hard panels, which are equipped with coupling elements which provide for a horizontal and a vertical interlocking on at least two of their edges, are made as relatively small plates with a width of 19 to 20 cm and a length of 1.20 to 1.40 m. It is also known that the plates, when being laid, have to be occasionally rotated into one another and out of one another so as to make them fit against a wall, skirting board or the like. A disadvantage of the known embodiments of the above-mentioned plates consists in that it is often difficult to carry out said rotation, for example when the plates have to be installed with their far ends under the edge of an overhanging cupboard or such. According to the above-mentioned second aspect of the invention, this disadvantage, as well as others, are avoided, if not minimised. Thanks to the small width, the panels are less high when being rotated, so that there are no disadvantages during the installation in a large number of practical applications.
Moreover, the above-mentioned relation between length and width offers a technical solution, as a result of which the visual xe2x80x98plate-likexe2x80x99 effect is excluded.
According to a third aspect of the invention, floor covering panels having a laminated structure include a panel decorative layer on the top surface, and bevels or such are formed as by cutting away on one or several edges of the panels, near the top side and the surface of these bevels is also provided with a bevel film or coating-like decorative layer, preferably a layer provided as a separate material and separate from the panel decorative layer. In particular, such a layer preferably consists of a separately provided print. Thanks to the use of such a separate print, the bevels can be easily provided with a bevel decorative surface. The base panels can then be made in a conventional manner by sawing them out of a large plate which has already been provided with a panel decorative layer, and the bevels may be printed later.
According to a major embodiment of the third aspect, the above-mentioned print consists of a print which is obtained by means of transfer printing. Such transfer printing offers the advantage, in combination with its use on floor panels, that high production rates can be obtained and that any pattern whatsoever can be realized. Further, this technique excludes the risk of the decorative top surface of the panels being soiled. Another major advantage hereby consists in that the print is immediately or almost immediately dry, so that the panels can be stacked and packed almost immediately.
Preferably, the floor panels, which are made according to the third aspect of the invention, have a core made of a material having a wood base, in particular wood which has been ground into particles or fibres, mixed with a binding agent, upon which the decorative layer is provided, and whereby the above-mentioned bevels extend through the material of the core. Thus a porous surface is obtained on the bevels, guaranteeing a good bond for the print layer.
As usual, the decorative layer of the panel preferably contains a layer printed with a pattern, such as a wood pattern, and the decorative layer according to the invention, in particular the print on the bevels or such, is preferably a similar pattern.
Moreover, use is preferably made of a moisture-proof, impermeable bevel decorative layer or print respectively, which is particularly advantageous in case the panels have a base plate which consists of porous material, such as MDF, HDF (medium density fiberboard and high density fiberboard) or the like. Thus is obtained an entirely moisture-proof structure on the top surface, on the flat surface by means of the usual layer of synthetic material on the one hand, and on the bevels by means of the additional bevel decorative layer situated on the bevel on the other hand.
Although the decorative layer on the bevels is preferably realized by means of transfer printing, other possibilities are not excluded. Thus, for example, use can be made of a self-adhesive strip.
According to a fourth aspect, the invention provides for a floor covering panel having a core made of MDF or HDF, or a similar material, wherein the panel is provided with an underlayer provided on the bottom side and fixed onto it, preferably made of polyethylene or a polyethylene based material. The combination of MDF or HDF with the use of an underlayer fixed onto it, especially when it is formed of polyethylene or is made on the basis of polyethylene, offers the advantage that particularly good sound-insulating qualities are obtained.
The present invention concerns embodiments applying only one of the above-mentioned aspects as well as embodiments in which two or several of the above-mentioned aspects are combined. In this respect it should be noted that two or several of the above-mentioned embodiments can be mutually combined at random, in any possible combination, provided these embodiments have no contradictory qualities.
Although, according to some of the above-mentioned aspects, the panels may consist of different sorts of material, the invention is particularly suitable for panels made of MDF or HDF, or a similar material.
According to a special embodiment, the panels have a thickness of 9 mm at the least, and better still of 10 mm at the least, as opposed to the usual thickness of 7 or 8 mm.
Thus are obtained relatively heavy panels, which consequently have a better sound-insulating effect, as a result of which less sound is produced when they are walked on.
In so far as coupling means as mentioned above are used which allow for a glueless interlocking, they can be of different nature. Thus, these coupling means can have one of the following characteristics or a combination of two or several of them:
that they are provided on two opposite edges of the panels;
that they are provided on panels which are rectangular, whereby they are provided on both pairs of opposite edges;
that at least for a number of the edges they allow for an assembly according to one of the following possibilities:
at-least by shifting the panels towards one another;
exclusively by shifting the panels towards one another;
at least by rotating the panels along the edges concerned;
exclusively by rotating the panels along the edges concerned;
by shifting the panels towards one another or by rotating them, as desired;
that, at least for a number of the edges, they allow for an uncoupling according to any of the following possibilities:
at least by shifting the panels but of one another in a direction perpendicular to the edges;
exclusively by shifting the panels out of one another in a direction perpendicular to the edges;
at least by rotating the panels along the edges concerned;
exclusively by rotating the panels along the edges concerned;
by shifting the panels out of one another as well as by rotating them;
that they are of the type which consists of a tongue and a groove on the one hand, and of locking means which ensure at least a specific interlocking in a direction perpendicular to the edges of the coupled panels and parallel to the plane of the panels on the other hand;
that they are realized as in the preceding paragraph, whereby the lip which limits the bottom side of the groove, seen from a cross section, extends past the upper lip, and whereby the locking means consist of one or several parts on the lip limiting the bottom side of the groove on the one hand, and of one or several parts on the bottom side of the tongue working in conjunction with the latter on the other hand;
that the above-mentioned tongue and groove are made such that when two of such panels are freely shifted towards one another, over a base or such, the tongue automatically is introduced into the groove;
that they are formed such that the panels, when coupled, fit into one another without any play or almost without any play.
Naturally, the invention also concerns panels with which the above-described floor coverings can be realized.